BOFFINS AT North Carolina University are developing a full-page refreshable display that allows the visually impaired to read Braille.

The team points out that current displays are completely inaccessible for blind people and they've had to rely on expensive electronic Braille displays that many can't afford.

The Electroactive Polymer screen would go beyond just allowing users to read a Braille bump screen. In effect, the technology could read images and pixel map them in to a tactile display using raised dots.

Researchers want to start building a prototype of a concept called a "hydraulic and latching mechanism."

"This material will allow us to raise dots to the correct height, so they can be read," said Dr Peichun Yang, lead scientist on the research team.

"Once the dots are raised, a latching mechanism would support the weight being applied by a person's fingers as the dots are read. The material also responds quickly, allowing a reader to scroll through a document or Web site quickly," he explained. µ